Bat
Archimandrite Nikifor’s Biblical Encyclopedia
(Lev. 11:19, Deut. 14:18, Is. 2:20)—a mammal of the order of Chiroptera, unclean according to the Law of Moses. Bats hide during the day in caves, old ruins, towers, and other empty and secluded places, and usually fly out in the evening in search of prey. The epithet “bat” is considered in the East one of the most insulting. The expression “to cast to the bats” (Is. 2:20) means to doom to hatred and desolation. The number of bats in certain cities of western Asia is truly enormous; there they even fly into rooms, being useful, however, in that they destroy mosquitoes, flies, and other insects. In Palestine, especially near the Dead Sea, in the Jordan Valley, and near the Sea of Gennesaret, bats are found in great numbers.